The late-'80s side project of Queen's drummer Roger Taylor, the Cross were … Read Full Bio ↴The late-'80s side project of Queen's drummer Roger Taylor, the Cross were originally a classic rock band with dance influences, then abandoned the dance aspect of their sound and produced two straight forward rock albums. Although Taylor stated when the band formed in 1987, that the group would be a force to be reckoned with within six months, the group never took off in any market, except Germany, and broke up in 1993. With the conclusion of Queen's Magic Tour in 1986, Roger Taylor took the opportunity of a lack of activity on the Queen front to form his own band, which he named the Cross. Leaving his drum kit behind, Taylor assumed the duties of rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist for the group. Outside of recruiting Queen's tour keyboardist, Spike Edney, the rest of Taylor's new band were found through an ad placed in the music press. They were a group of unknowns, consisting of Clayton Moss (guitar), Peter Noone (bass guitar), and Josh Macrae (drums). With a group of songs already written, Taylor decided to record the first Cross album, Shove It, largely by himself and then tour with his new band. A hybrid of classic rock and dance influences, the album received some praise in the British music press but failed to get higher than the bottom of the album charts, as did it's three singles. In America, the album failed to chart and the group would not release another album there. The band resumed operations after the next Queen album with Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know, which was written by all the members in the band and embraced a classic rock sound. The lead single, "Power to Love," only dented the bottom of the British charts, while the album failed to chart at all. However, the band did continue to do well in Germany, and, with no record support in England, released their third album, Blue Rock, in that country only. After a final gig in 1993, the band called it a day. Taylor went on to record solo albums a
nd work with Queen, while Edney later helped found the S. A. S. Band, and Peter Noone joined Miss World.
Biography by Geoff Orens

2)
The Cross (더 크로스) is a korean rock band formed in 2003.

Members:

- Lee Si-Ha (이시하), 29/10/1982 - Composition, back vocals, piano, guitar, leader
- Kim Kyeong-Hyeon (김경현), 02/08/1982 - Main vocals

Former members:

- Kim Hyeok-Keon (김혁건), 12/04/1982 – Main vocals

3)
The Cross is also a Traditional Metal/Progressive Metal band with one Demo called Metal From Above. It was reissued through Steel Legacy(333 LP and 1000 CD)in 2007.

4)
the CROSS is also a Japanese duo, which consists of Daisuke and ショーガ (Syo-ga).
Website: http://thecross.web.fc2.com/index.html (in Japanese)

5)
The Cross is doom metal band with black metal influences from Brazil

Manipulator
The Cross Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

And here comes trouble
Manipulator
Can you see the way he twists you round his little finger
Manipulator
Dressed to tease - if looks could please I'll see you later
Cold green eyes you've grown to despise

Manipulator

They'll stab your back but don't look back
Manipulator
He pushes the bell with his finger
Don't you stop - don't you linger
Checkout
Kiss me boy
But how many more has he got in store
Checkout

Manipulator - ch-ch-checkout
Ma-ma-manipulator - ch-ch-checkout

Checkout
Lower than low - lower than low
Low low low lower than low
Checkout
Trouble
Ch-checkout

Manipulator
And here comes trouble
Jealousy was not his history
Come on now how low can you go
Not much lower but lower than low
Checkout

Manipulator - ch-ch-checkout
Manipulator - lower than low
Manipulator - ma-ma-manipulator

Lower than low

And here comes trouble trouble trouble trouble
Trouble trouble trouble

Overall Meaning

The Cross's song "Manipulator" is a commentary on a person - referred to as "he" - who manipulates and controls those around him. The lyrics begin by describing the individual as trouble, a manipulator who can twist people around his finger. The singer warns of his behavior and appeals to the listener to be aware of his intentions. The manipulator is described as using his looks, particularly his cold green eyes, to get what he wants, but he's also known to backstab his victims. The chorus repeats the word "checkout" several times - a metaphor for leaving the situation or relationship with the manipulator.

As the song progresses, the manipulator is portrayed as being jealous, although it wasn't his past history. The singer continues to emphasize how low the manipulator will stoop and implores listeners not to fall prey to him any longer. The repetition of the word "trouble" at the end of the song brings the song back full circle to its opening lines.

Line by Line Meaning

And here comes trouble
The subject is introducing a problematic person, who is the manipulator.

Manipulator
The manipulator is the central theme of the song.

Can you see the way he twists you round his little finger
The manipulator is highly skilled at manipulating people.

Dressed to tease - if looks could please I'll see you later
The manipulator dresses in a way that increases his appeal to others.

Cold green eyes you've grown to despise
The subject has learned to despise the cold stare of the manipulator's green eyes.

They'll stab your back but don't look back
The manipulator is willing to backstab the people he manipulates, and they should not rely on him for support.

He pushes the bell with his finger
The manipulator is presumptuous and expects others to attend to him.

Don't you stop - don't you linger
The subject should not allow themselves to be caught up in the manipulator's schemes.

Checkout
The word signifies pay attention to the message conveyed.

Kiss me boy
The manipulator makes advances on others, in this case the subject.

But how many more has he got in store
The subject questions whether the manipulator has multiple victims still in his sights.

Lower than low - lower than low
The manipulator's actions are worse than the lowest of lows.

Trouble
The manipulator is nothing but trouble.

Jealousy was not his history
Jealousy does not feature in the manipulator's character history.

Come on now how low can you go
The subject expresses dismay regarding the manipulator's heinous behavior.

Not much lower but lower than low
The manipulator has stooped to an incredibly low level.

Contributed by Adeline P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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